Prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections in Jenin Governorate, Palestine: a 10–year retrospective study

Intestinal parasites are frequently transmitted via contaminated food or drinking water, but may also be spread from person to person through fecal-oral contact. Intestinal protozoan and helminth parasites are widely prevalent causing considerable medical and public health problems in developing countries. Intestinal parasitic protozoal and helminthic infections are widely distributed throughout the world, especially in the developing countries. World Health Organization estimates that some 3.5 billion people worldwide are affected, and that 450 million are ill as a result of these infections[1]. The prevalence of these parasitic infections varies in different parts of the world. In developing countries, however, geographic and socioeconomic factors as well as unpredictable factors such as natural disasters contribute to the problem. In addition to that, these countries mainly have tropics or subtropics climates and relatively humid areas that, combined with poverty, malnutrition, personal and community hygiene, high population density, unavailability of potable water and low health status, poor sanitary facilities all provide optimum conditions for the growth, transmission of these parasites and increase the probability of exposure to intestinal parasites[2-4]. The situation of intestinal parasitic infection in Palestine, is still a problem, probably due to defect in health status, poor sanitation, population crowdedness, bad hygienic habits, and poor health education mainly in Palestinian Refugee Camps. In Palestine relatively few studies have been done on the gastrointestinal parasites. Most of these studies focused on Gaza Strip. According to the best of our knowledge no studies have been done on the intestinal parasites in Jenin Governorate. The aim of this study is to get a true idea about the existence of intestinal parasites and their prevalence among Jenin Governorate (Northern Palestine) populations by referring to records in Jenin Governmental Hospital.